Feeding Louisiana Tapped to Help with Medicaid Unwinding

Feeding Louisiana has recently been awarded a grant to provide assistance to individuals seeking to complete or apply for Louisiana Medicaid.

The organization plans to use the grant to hire 14 Medicaid Outreach Coordinators who will work closely with regional food banks and pantries to help their clients meet the necessary reporting and eligibility requirements for the program.

This initiative is particularly timely in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the Public Health Emergency response, the Medicaid program helped to ensure that people remained continuously enrolled in the program.

However, as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, which was signed into law on December 29, 2022, thousands of Louisiana citizens may lose their coverage. Congress has set an end date of March 31, 2023, for the continuous enrollment provision and plans to phase down the enhanced federal Medicaid matching funds through December 2023.

Beginning in April, Louisiana Medicaid must restart its eligibility reviews, which are also known as renewals. Not everyone will need to renew their eligibility at the same time, but it is expected to take 12 months to complete all renewals. It is important for individuals to review their eligibility and provide any necessary documentation to avoid losing their coverage.

Feeding Louisiana's efforts to hire Medicaid Outreach Coordinators will play a vital role in ensuring that individuals can navigate the complex Medicaid renewal process and maintain coverage. Additional information about these efforts will be available on Feeding Louisiana's website by the end of April.